Fetterman Wins Democratic Primary for Lieutenant Governor

The Braddock mayor who rose to state and national prominence during his run for U.S. Senate in 2016, emerged from a crowded field to win the Democratic nomination for lieutenant governor in Tuesday's primary.

It was a historic result, as incumbent Mike Stack, battered by controversies over the past year, became the first sitting Pennsylvania lieutenant governor to lose in a primary.

Fetterman, who carried Centre County, won about 38 percent of the vote statewide with 97 percent of precincts reporting, well ahead of runner-up and former Philadelphia Deputy Mayor Nina Ahmad, Chester County Commissioner Kathi Cozzone, Stack, and Montgomery County businessman Ray Sosa.

Standing 6 feet 8 inches tall and usually clad in a black shirt and jeans, Fetterman has emerged as an unconventional candidate, a small-town mayor in the Rust Belt with progressive views and an endorsement from Bernie Sanders.

Stack, meanwhile, reportedly had a poor relationship with Wolf and came under fire when staff at the lieutenant governor's residence and from his police detail complained about their treatment by Stack and his wife. Wolf ordered an investigation and ultimately took the unprecedented step of stripping Stack's police detail.

The lieutenant governor has few officially prescribed duties. The position is the president and tie-breaking vote in the state Senate and is first in the line of succession to the governor, as well as serving as chair of the Board of Pardons and Emergency Management Council. But typically the lieutenant governor is assigned to various roles at the discretion and based on the priorities of the governor.

State Sen. Scott Wagner won a three-way battle in Tuesday's primary to secure the Republican nomination for Pennsylvania governor.

With 93 percent of precincts reporting, the York County senator had captured 44 percent of the vote, outpacing two first-time candidates in health care systems consultant Paul Mango and attorney Laura Ellsworth.